This trash can is garbage

The new bin pilot project is stinking up our streets with corporate monuments to consumerism. What a kick in the head for pedestrian power and those of us trying to boost recycling.

1. Eyesore

For a city supposedly concerned about design, these monsters are just plain ugly.

2. Doesn’t ad up

Trying to reduce waste by putting more ads on street corners encouraging people to buy more stuff seems hypocritical to us.

3. Recycling smokescreen

Making the opening for cigarette butts as big as the recycling port makes little ecological sense. Are we promoting smoking or recycling? And what happened to the promised receptacle for dead batteries?

4. Refuse to lose

The tiny garbage receptacle is poorly labelled, so stuff that should be recycled gets tossed. It also has no door, so bins are often overflowing. Yuk.

5. Space hogs

As high and as wide as bus shelters, these monsters take up prime pedestrian space, block important sightlines for cyclists and violate the city’s own accessibility guidelines.

6. Electric circus

Elsewhere, Eucan’s bins use solar or wind power to illuminate the ad-festooned behemoths. Here, we’re stuck with electric-powered models that are sure to short-circuit our already overtaxed electricity grid.